Raw Intel

Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) is planning a major organizational restructuring, with two new large-scale formations expected to be established in fiscal year 2026. According to media reports, the plans include elevating the existing 15th Brigade on Okinawa to a division and consolidating the JGSDF’s elite special operations units into a dedicated brigade. The restructuring […] The post Japan to reorganize army structure with new large-scale formations first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

Ukrainian unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) developers are accelerating battlefield innovation through hands-on testing with frontline troops, using feedback from the recent Strike UGV Crash Test to refine their platforms for real combat conditions. Organized by the Snake Island Institute, AB3 TECH, the 3rd Assault Brigade’s NC13 Strike UGV Company, and the 3rd Army Corps, the […] The post Ukraine puts UGVs through battlefield stress test first appeared on Defence Blog.View the full article

In the last week there is a topic that I’ve covered on the UNCLAS Read Board Podcast last Wednesday, and this Sunday on the Midrats Podcast, that it is still stuck in my craw—so let’s start the week with it as I think it has the potential to have an even worse second-order effect than I thought. I am, of course, referring to one of the most irresponsible collective acts by our elected representatives who once wore the uniform or served in our intelligence services since, well, I’m having trouble coming up with something else this gross. A group of six Democratic lawmakers with military or national security backgrounds released a video in November 2025 urging U.S. service …

The Italian Army has taken delivery of its first Skynex air defense system from Rheinmetall. According to a press release from Rheinmetall, the first Skynex battery was officially handed over on Dec. 18, 2025, at the Italian Army’s Air Defence Artillery Command in Sabaudia. The system gives Italy the ability to defend against air attacks […]View the full article

The United States has delivered the first MC-55A Peregrine aircraft to the Royal Australian Air Force, L3Harris Technologies confirmed on January 24, 2026. The aircraft was handed over by the U.S. Air Force following completion of integration and mission system testing, according to the company. The delivery is part of Australia’s Peregrine program, which is […]View the full article

New satellite imagery has confirmed extensive destruction at Russia’s Votkinsk Machine Building Plant, a key missile production hub in the Udmurt Republic, following a Ukrainian strike carried out on the night of February 21, according to independent open-source analysts. The confirmation through satellite imagery provides the first visual assessment of damage at one of Russia’s […]View the full article

A newly published presolicitation notice shows the United States Air Force is preparing to award a sole-source contract to Northrop Grumman for support of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter’s AN/APG-81 radar and AN/AAQ-37 Distributed Aperture System. The notice, issued on March 19, 2026, outlines plans to expand software engineering and sustainment capabilities tied to the […]View the full article

The U.S. Air Force’s B-21 Raider stealth bomber has successfully conducted aerial refueling with a KC-135 Stratotanker as part of its ongoing flight test campaign, the Department of the Air Force announced on April 14, 2026. The milestone, achieved during the program’s rigorous test and evaluation program at Edwards Air Force Base, California, was presented […]View the full article

Aerostats, the tethered observation balloons that most people associate with World War II convoy protection, are getting a serious second look from the U.S. Army as a platform for counter-drone defense. One company’s second-generation tactical aerostat is now being evaluated as the foundation for a complete anti-drone architecture that could eventually carry and launch drone […]View the full article

Canada announced on June 2 that it finalized a deal in January 2026 to purchase 26 HIMARS rocket artillery systems from the United States for approximately $1.9 billion, giving the Canadian Army its first long-range precision strike capability and a weapon that Ukraine has used to devastating effect against Russian logistics, ammunition depots, and command […]View the full article

The CEO of AM General stepped into a rapidly widening political fight on June 26, publishing a public statement defending his company’s handling of the JLTV A2 program as Congress moved to slash funding, the Marine Corps hunted for a backup supplier, and lawmakers in Washington called the program a readiness crisis in the making. […]View the full article

GE Aerospace and Magellan Aerospace Corporation announced Wednesday they have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish maintenance, repair and overhaul capabilities in Canada for the F414-GE-39E engine that powers the Saab JAS 39 Gripen E fighter, an agreement the companies explicitly tied to whether the Canadian government actually decides to buy the Gripen for […]View the full article

The U.S. Marine Corps has awarded Accrete a contract to deliver an artificial intelligence platform designed to track and analyze narratives across social media, broadcast outlets, and messaging platforms in near real time. The contract covers Argus for Cognitive Advantage, a system built on Accrete’s Knowledge Engine platform. Accrete describes Knowledge Engines as tools that […]View the full article

The Battle of Leyte Gulf. The world's largest naval battle. Every type of action, night and day, for days, from air-to-air to battleship action. No one did it better than The History Channel, back in its prime (imagine this using modern computer simulation), in taking the time to put the battle into context. Get a cup of coffee. It is a two-part series, and in the opening of Part 1, as they describe the state of the Imperial Japanese Navy, ponder a bit if, in 2026, looking toward the next Great Pacific War, we are preparing ourselves to be the U.S. Navy of 1944, or the Imperial Japanese Navy of 1944. If you build yourself for a short war—founded on a hope/cope of Deterr…

Korea Aerospace Industries has flown its FA-50 light combat aircraft in formation with a jet-powered drone for the first time, a test the company says is the first real manned-unmanned formation flight in South Korea. The flight took place on Oct. 8 over the sea south of Goheung, in South Jeolla Province, KAI said on […]View the full article

Americas The US Air Force decided to relocate the AC-130J Ghostrider Formal Training Unit from Hurlburt Field, Florida to Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. This is done so that the Air Force Special Operations Command to realign its training mission under Air Education and Training Command and consolidate AC-130 initial and mission qualification training at Kirtland AFB. According to the service, the AC-130J is a highly modified C-130J capable of extremely accurate navigation due to the fully integrated navigation systems with dual inertial navigation systems and global positioning system. The US Air Force announced on November 20 that it has selected Maxwell Air Forc…

Americas Lockheed Martin won a $38.7 million contract modification, which exercises an option for ordering emerging capabilities and analysis systems engineering to include programmatic and logistics tasks that will analyze the F-35 air system’s ability to meet future operational requirements, investigating cost and weight reduction program options and conducting modeling and simulation activities. Additional assessments may include such efforts as analyzing changes to design life, operational readiness, reliability and air system design and configuration. Work will take place in Fort Worth, Texas. Estimated completion is in December 2021. The 85th Test and Evaluation Sq…

Americas Members of the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade got a look at development of the SB-1 Defiant vertical lift helicopter, the Army said. The active duty and National Guard soldiers of the brigade, headquartered at Fort Campbell, visited the Sikorsky Development Flight Center in West Palm Beach, Florida., to learn about the design of the medium-lift helicopter destined to replace the UH-60 Black Hawk, which first saw service in 1974. Northrop Grumman will install an upgraded Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasure (LAIRCM) system that includes the new Common Infrared Countermeasure (CIRCM) on aircraft and helicopters under a $146 million order from the US Air Force. Th…

Afghanistan is a land locked nation, but in the USA’s two-decade presence in that country, her Navy was there from the beginning to end serving along with her sister services. Many are familiar with the untold number of Individual Augmentation (IA) assignments Navy active duty and reserve component personnel filled, Navy Corpsmen serving with USMC units, and even SeaBee deployments to Afghanistan, but there were other units with a large US Navy presence, a few of the Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRT). This Sunday from 5-6pm Eastern we’re going to take a snapshot of this part of the Afghanistan conflict from its high-water mark - 2010 and 2011 - with our guests Captain…

Americas Lockheed Martin won a $12.9 million deal for AEGIS design agent field engineering services. Aegis is an integrated missile guidance system used on US Navy and allied ships to protect the battle group. Work will take place in Virginia, California, Hawaii, Japan, Washington and California. Estimated completion date is in September 2023. The US Army is integrating a 20 kW-class laser weapon system into its new Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) to help soldiers down smaller unmanned aerial systems (UASs), according to the director of the service’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office Lieutenant General Neil Thurgood. The three-star general spoke at the Spa…